Park's Contract Marriage Story (2023)

Messy plot twist and lots of plot holes

The first episode frankly was boring until the time travel element started. But it was getting better until the "plot twist" that ruined the entire show. Even the comedy was good at the beginning and then the series became serious and senseless.

The grandfather made no sense to me. Why was he cruel to the ML's mother? Then why was he cruel to the ML's step mother and her son? Why did he think the ML was deserving but not his step brother? Why was he obsessed with the painting? Why was he kind to the FL and then later wanted nothing to do with her? Why did he need the ML to be married? The step mother being the villain made more of a sense than the grandfather. It felt like poor writing to force a last minute twist on the audience without explaining why.

The FL time travelled and thought ML was her husband. Then she got confirmation later that he was the reincarnation of her deceased husband. Later she time travels back to the past again and stays away from the past version of her husband because she is in love with his future reincarnation but acts like they are two different people. They could have let the past version die sooner instead of this confusing behaviour from the FL. The past ML died thinking his wife was in love with another man. The other man being him in the future. Bizarre!

The lady who controlled the time travel disappeared from the story after the FL travel in the past. There was no explanation why she vanished. Why did the servant girl/sister not travel back along with the FL? Why did everyone retain memory of the FL after she returned to the past? Meanwhile in the past, FL's mother forgot about the servant girl's existence. The same amount of time that FL lived in the past, passed by in the future. FL falls in the water and reappears in the future out of thin air completely dry. The man who killed her in the past - no elaboration on whether he got punished. FL's parents would have still been heartbroken that their daughter was killed or committed suicide the second time. The rules of the time travel were truly vague.

The actions of the past characters made more sense than that of the future. For example, the man working with the step mother had grievance with the grandfather but was trying to kill the FL and then the ML instead of the man who was actually the problem - the grandfather.

ML was destined to die if the FL stayed in the future. When she leaves, he is magically cured. But when she returns, his illness doesn't return. No explanation on what the rules were for this to happen.

I found these things made the plot really weak and ruined the essence of the show that seemed to be decent initially.

The positives where the leads chemistry, some of the earlier comedy when FL is adjusting to the future, the OST and theme are stunning, the designs are pretty, the FL's savvy servant girl, and the ML's assistant's smart sister who I wish had more of a role. Even the step brother was an interesting and neglected character.

I wish I could rate this higher but too much of the series made no sense towards the end. If you don't mind illogical storylines, you might be able to enjoy this. But this is one of the weakest shows if you are a time travel plot lover. I would suggest to skip this one.

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Just fine

I felt like this drama had a really strong start — the female lead's spunkiness made her really likeable, the mystery was intriguing, and the time travel also made for really interesting parallels.

As the drama went on, I felt like it a lost a lot of its spark, opting for either humor or a modern-only plot, leaving the saeguk mystery and time travel element both really neglected until the last episode and not really tying the two timelines together well enough. It didn't make much sense what Yeon-woo's time travel had to do with the modern storyline, or why those parallels even existed. I think the stakes weren't established well enough for me to feel emotionally invested: I paid painstaking attention to the modern day characters to figure out how they were tied to their past lives, but by the end it felt like the modern day characters were the far more important ones. I really think this drama could've used a full 16 episodes to balance out the modern and historical plotlines and add some explanation for the time travel.

Other than that, I felt like the side characters were fine and occasionally funny but pretty unimportant to the plot, and the main romance was also fun but generally a cookie-cutter ship. It's a fun watch but for me, not very memorable.

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Mixed feelings about the ending

The main characters in the present get a happy ending but same cannot be said for the characters in the Joseon. The writer should have put much more thought in the story and also tied the past properly. Too many loose ends.

What about her parents who treated her great? Their daughter just died.

What was the point of saving Tae Ha in the past life, he just dies later on. And during the time he lives he has to be stuck with a wife who's in love with his reincarnation and he is completely clueless about the identity of this guy.

The past Tae Ha should have gotten to live a long healthy life. It felt a lot like present Tae Ha stole Past Tae Ha's love, even though I was rooting for the present Tae Ha and Yun Woo to end up together, I can't help but point this out.

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One of the best dramas I've ever watched .

This HAS to be the perfect drama , in my opinion. I love me some rom-com, fantasy, sageuk, mystery, suspense altogether. It has the perfect blend of it all. I never watch ANY ongoing kdrama, because I'm always scared of getting K-Trauma. But this one right here.. has me hooked, that I always rush to watch the new episodes(sometimes I even re-watch them which, I don't do with other kdramas) every Friday - Saturday.
The casting is PERFECT! No one else could've pulled off the characters other than these actors. The acting is really really good. You can really feel what emotions they are expressing. And the chemistry between the main leads is Chemistry-ing.? I love that they didn't make the FL weak and dumb who gets easily swayed. Though I agree with a few reviews saying they should have shown more parts of her adjusting to new Joseon and it's technologies, but seeing as this drama has only 12 episodes, I have no problem with that. The FL trying to open the door, the taxi scene, money scene and vaccum cleaner scene were hilarious? I kept replaying them several times!
Since it's a time slip story, it has some similarities to other time slip dramas ofc but the plot is very different and interesting. It just keeps getting better and better.
The FL ML interactions(both on-screen and BTS) are so sweet that makes me blush.? They actually look like a real couple. The supporting characters are super funny as well. The comedic timing is well-written and well-executed. I've laughed out loud in so many of the scenes?
But I'm always on the edge with anxiety whenever the potential villain(s) show up on the screen. So many mysteries left to unfold. Looking forward to this drama. Hope it keeps on getting more attention it deserves, because it's really good and suuperr underrated (internationally).

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A BEAUTIFUL STORY OF two lovers that are fated to be together <3

This show is one of a kind. I have never watched a drama as good as this, it is 100% my favorite of 2023!!! I was reluctant to watch because of the historical themes (I have dropped every historical drama I tried watching) but I was blown out of the water and kept watching this show every single week. This show executes everything so well. First and foremost, the romance is one of a kind. When watching this show, I am completely absorbed into the romance and feel like I am watching a real life couple live out their life. The comedy is amazing with every single side character having their great moments. The second male lead is one of the best executed as well because he isn't overbearing to the female lead and is simply kind to her to express himself. The OSTs are amazing and I kept playing the songs on repeat this whole time of the drama airing. It's hard to explain until you watch it but even the background music is perfect for every scene they illustrated. My good praises for this show can keep going and going but ultimately it made me feel so happy in a tough time and I haven't been invested in a drama like this for a long time. If you are thinking about starting this, definitely start and I'm sure you will not only love it, but try recommending it to every single one of your friends as I am! Bae Inhyuk's best work and the show that has made me a huge fan of Lee Se Young. To summarize, this show is the love story of the century!!!!!!

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Great Drama but ending could have been a lot better

This drama had a lot of cute moments, I liked watching the ML slowly fall for the FL and watching her help him deal with his own trauma. The acting was fantastic on everyone’s end and it had me hooked the entire drama. I started to get antsy during the last 2 episodes when I realized there was still a lot to do and couldn’t imagine how it would all be resolved. For me this ending was lukewarm, I know it’s considered a happy ending because she did come back to present day but we did not get to see it until the very last minutes of the episode. I wanted to see the FL reunite with her best friend, and just more of the couple in present day. Overall a good drama and I don’t regret watching it.

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Butterflied Lovers.

Korean dramas are still kne of the top countries when it comes to capability to produce well thought out, and filler-less dramas that can keep you immersed into the story without being overdone.

I started the Story Park's Marriage Contract on a whim - it had history, reincarnation with time travel as an added bonus. Also, I had seen both Lee Se Young and Bae In Hyuk's performances in previous dramas.
The only ‘12 episodes’ format was another relief.

Park Yeon Woo, a sprightly daughter of a Minister evades marriage and does what she loves the most: designing and selling garments that where too modern to handle. When news of this breaks out and chaos ensues, her parents marry her off to Kang Tae Ha, a rumoured old bachelor whom no one wanted. Yeon Woo was no stranger to Tae Ha as they had met before. But, at the night of their wedding, he reveals that his weak heart might leave her a widow and proposes divorce. He dies the very night.
Yeon Woo accepts her fate, but things take a mysterious turn when she is kidnapped and thrown into a well at her home… and re- emerges 200 years into the future.

What confuses her is that her deceased husband was very much alive, albeit being styled weirdly. The modern Kang Tae Ha decides to contractually marry the ‘lunatic woman’ in a split second decision after his plans go awry in order to appease his grandfather.
Yeon Woo soon runs into many modern versions of the people of her past and gets embroiled in the power play of the SH Company.


SOPMC is half makjang and half historical with romance as an integral aspect. The story itself becomes ‘fill-in-the-blanks’ in the last historical bit, but the entire set up and background was well established since the beginning, so I did not mind this much.

I'm not as familiar with KDrama actors as I'm one of those picky watchers, but Lee Se Young is definitely on my watch list. She manages to pull off both comedy and tragedy with ease. Bae In Hyuk was no exception, particularly in the latter half. One scene in episode 11 was particularly striking. And he was highly convincing in portraying the past and present versions that at times they appeared to be two different characters.
Sa Wol, Yoon Woo’s companion/maid and the secretary Mr. Hong were another hilarious duo who lightened the overall darkness surrounding the leading couple.

I even liked Tae Min, Tae Ha's stepbrother.
Ms. Min, though meant to be portrayed as villain, made me curious about where her grudges stem from. I was glad that this was not brushed up easily and all the puzzle pieces actually fell into place without appearing as a deux ex machina or plot armoured.

The romance was neat and natural without being overly dramatic and mushy. I must say, did an excellent job portraying both the historical as well as modern versions of Tae Ha.

I don't think I'll rewatch this anytime soon. But, it's definitely good for a quick and enjoyable watch.

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A História do Contrato de Casamento de Park começa muito bem. Comecei a assistir despretensiosamente, sem muitas expectativas e simplesmente me apaixonei. Na primeira metade do drama eu passava a semana ansiosa pelos próximos episódios. Porém, a partir da segunda metade todo o charme do drama acaba sendo um pouco eclipsado pelo plot de mistério e as intenções traiçoeiras do avô do protagonista, da CEO Min e do secretário dela. A partir daí eu já não esperava ansiosa pelo episódios, continuei a ver pelas migalhas das interações entre os protagonistas. Os atores que deram vida a Park Yun Woo e Kang Tae Ha tiveram uma química maravilhosa de assistir, não por acaso eles ganharam o prêmio de fim de ano de melhor casal pela MBC, prêmio merecido.

Mas apesar da química dos protagonistas, a segunda metade do drama foi bem arrastada. O final foi satisfatório. Podemos dizer um "final feliz", contudo não posso deixar de dizer que fiquei com pena do Kang Tae Ha do passado, tadinho. Mesmo tendo sobrevivido a emboscada da madrasta, acabou perdendo o grande amor de sua vida para ele mesmo do futuro rs.

Gostaria que os roteiristas esquecessem essa necessidade de colocar plot de mistério em drama de romance. As vezes só um bom romance é suficiente para cativar a audiência. Mas hoje em dia parece que é obrigatório inserir um mistério, muitas vezes desnecessário, e que acaba deixando a história chata.

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Prima bene poi male

In poche parole, è un classico drama storico romantico con viaggio nel tempo uguale a moltissimi altri drama fantasy storici romantici, solo un poco ristretto. Ebbene sì perchè in 12 episodi hanno sintetizzato una quantità di informazioni e azioni che normalmente hanno più spazio. In verità all'inizio mi stava piacendo assai, ero molto coinvolta nella storia. Poi per me inizia a declinarsi, ma la parte peggiore di tutte è proprio il finale. Ci sono troppi buchi di trama, cose che ti chiedi perchè uno sì e l'altro no, etc. Di base non è malvagio ma secondo me, se avessero fatto un lavoro leggermente migliore sarebbe stato uno dei più bei drama di sempre.

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Delightful!

I am so sad that it’s over ?. This show was so delightful to watch! With every new episode that was released, I enjoyed it more and more. It was the perfect mix of mystery, fun, romance and heartbreak, and I think they used up the 12 episodes they had very nicely.

Se Young’s and In Hyuk’s chemistry was so nice, I loved their characters together so much! And the second couple matched each other’s unhinged energy so perfectly, both couples were a delight to watch.

The music also delivered amazingly. The instrumental was so great, building up the scenes so well that it got me at the edge of my seat!

The styling was also so beautiful. Everyone looked exquisite and I really enjoyed the fashion show in the middle part of the series. Usually, when there is such an event teased in a show, the hype within the story is too big and the final scene ends up being super underwhelming, but not here. The designs looked fresh and pretty and definitely matched with how we got to see Yeon Woo up to that point.

The last episode was really nice as well, and wrapped up both stories quite nicely. Overall, a great show to finish as the first of the new year?

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Park Yeon Woo is blooming in the "new Joseon"

I feel that the pilot does a good job of setting the premise of the story and introducing the characters. Park Yeon Woo is a free-spirited woman who’s feeling suffocated living in 19th century Korea. She enjoys making clothing and wants to be independent, something that her noble status and society in general is hindering her from. Unable to go against her parents wishes of marriage she gets married but her husband unexpectedly dies on their wedding night. Unable to mourn him she gets kidnapped, thrown into a well and gets sent to present-day Seoul. Here she meets the ML, Kang Tae Ha who looks exactly like her dead husband.

The FL rather quickly starts to adapt to her new life and feels more at home. I enjoy that she actually gets to be herself more and do the things she likes to do. The leads also start falling for one another and even get to kiss in episode 7. However, it all feels a bit rushed. That a woman from Joseon adapts this quickly to a whole new world and even kisses a “new” guy, even though he looks like her dead husband, in the span of a few days is kind of unrealistic. However, I get that things have to speed up because this drama only has 12 episodes.

Another aspect that’s interesting is the general mystery. Not much has been revealed to date. Who is the colored eye woman that keeps talking about fate? Who is the masked man that kidnapped FL? Is it all the work of the evil stepmother or is someone else the villain?

The grandfather is starting to act suspicious. He has that portrait of Yeon Woo and seems to dislike her. We will see what happens further down the line.

Overall it’s a beautiful drama that has a general romcom feeling. So far I give it an 8.5/10 rating. We will have to see how the rest of the episodes wrap up the story.

This review was written after watching episode 7. I will edit it when the series is completed.

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